I Told You So
by gabby227
Summary: After their breakup, Damon decides that he wants Caroline back.  But has she moved on without him?  AU.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This fic is based on Carrie Underwood's song **_**I Told You So**_**. I love the song and I really wanted to write a fic to do the song justice.**

**Warning: This is SUPPOSED TO BE a sad fic. If I get requests to move on with the story, I might think about it, but for now, think of it as a one-shot. **

**Updates for **_**Broken**_** and **_**Get Mine, Get Yours**_** are coming later this week. I've had a bit of family drama and I had to deal with that first. **

It was his fault. He knew that fact from the moment he picked up the phone. Damon sat there on his bed, cell phone in his hand. He was looking at it, contemplating whether or not he should call her, because all of this _had _been his fault. He was the one who had left.

Looking at his phone intently, Damon went over that night in his mind. He wouldn't blame Caroline in the least if she wanted him to stay gone.

_Flashback, six months ago._

"I don't think that this thing between us is working," he watched her intently as he recited the words that he had practiced for so long to her. If he didn't get up the nerve to break up with her now, he never would.

"What do you mean?" Her blue eyes watched his carefully, and she knew it was coming. She had to know that it was coming. Things between her and Damon hadn't been the greatest lately and, in all honesty, she wouldn't blame him is he _did_ leave her.

"This isn't working out, Caroline. I'm moving back to the boarding house with Stefan…"

"You don't have to say anything, Damon. I understand." She spoke the words softly, and he almost had a hard time hearing her. "But if you come back to me wanting a relationship, I'm just going to laugh and say I told you so."

Ouch, but even Damon couldn't deny that he had that coming. He turned and went out of her house, leaving a heartbroken and torn Caroline behind him.

_End of flashback_

So, what he did was wrong, and he knew it, but he had been dating her for almost five years, and it just felt like routine. Everything that they did, even everything that they said to each other, just felt like routine. He wanted something else, something that would feel brand new.

It turns out that you have to be careful what you wish for. Since the breakup, Damon had been with other women – none of them were girlfriend material, unlike Caroline. He had just gone hopelessly from one woman to another, and in the end he was just keeping a certain girl around, mostly to snack on. It bothered him that that's what he kept her there for, but he always justified it with some little excuse. Damon was getting sick of this life, though, and wanted to go back to Caroline.

But what would she say? What would she do? If he picked up that phone right now, would she say 'I told you so', just like she had threatened to do? Would she even give him a chance? He sighed softly before closing the phone and silently putting it on his dresser. Maybe that was just another problem for another day.

-x-

Another day, the same problem. This was starting to eat him alive. He was growing more and more in paranoia every day. He wanted nothing more than to call Caroline up and apologize. He would even buy out the local flower shop if he thought that would give him a chance to start over with her. But Caroline had always been a stubborn one –not to say that she didn't have a right this time, because she really did – and he knew that a few flowers – or a few hundred, even - wouldn't change her mind either way. Sometimes he wished that she was a flowers kind of a girl.

He had messed up; he knew that perfectly. Even if Stefan hadn't lectured him afterwards, and Elena and Bonnie for that matter, he'd still feel awful. It took a few weeks for it to actually sink in – ever since the first girl, he was always comparing in his mind what she had that Caroline didn't, and vice versa. He missed her before he even realized that he missed her.

Flipping his phone open once more, he watched the screen. Part of him wished that he could just make the goddamn phone call, but the other part of him was panicked that Caroline would have found somebody new. There was that Tyler Lockwood that was always hanging around with her – with Caroline knowing that Tyler was a werewolf and Tyler knowing that Caroline was a vampire, they could pretty much take on the world together – as long as she stayed the hell away from him on a full moon, where his bite could, you know, actually kill her.

Tyler and Caroline always had chemistry. Even when they hated each other, they still had chemistry with one another. They had a chance to be epic, and Damon was kicking himself double time for even _thinking_ about leaving.

He sighed heavily, gathering his courage, before he flipped his phone and dialed her number. She answered on the first ring.

"It's been six months," was all she said, but it told him everything that he needed to know.

"I know, Caroline. Can we meet somewhere, where we can, you know, talk? How about the Grill?"

"Tyler is working at the Grill and I'd rather him not see us together right now. Why don't you come over to my house?"

Damon wasn't sure if he should jump for joy or be green with envy that she seemed to have established some kind of relationship with Tyler. After a moment of silence, he said, "That sounds great. I should be there in 10."

-x-

He went through her front door, not even bothering to knock, and saw Caroline on the couch in the living room. She was laying on her back, a small couch pillow over her head. He wasn't sure if she was trying to sleep, or if she knew he was here and this was her weird way of avoiding him.

"Hello, Damon," came the muffled voice from underneath the pillow. She reached up and grabbed a hold of the pillow, lifting if off of her slowly. Her blue eyes met his ice blue ones and she sat up, making room for him on the couch. He sat, his gaze never leaving hers.

"Caroline," he answered abruptly. "What's been happening?"

Caroline shot Damon a look before saying, "You've been gone for six months –which was _your_ idea, by the way – and now you come back and all you say is, 'what's happening?'"

"I know that I was gone for a while, and I know that the breakup was all my fault, but I need you to understand me."

She sat up, crossed her legs and glanced at the watch on her wrist. It was quarter to eleven, "I'm meeting Tyler at the Grill for lunch at noon. You have an hour and twenty five minutes."

"I – we – broke up because I felt like I needed space. I needed air. But the more and more space I got, the more needy I got. And I tried to date other girls, I tried relationships with other people, but I couldn't do it. And do you know why?"

Caroline nodded slowly, "Because tying you down doesn't work, Damon."

"That's not it, dammit!" Damon sighed slowly, trying to get his anger under control, because looking at her once more. "I need you. I wanted a break because I wanted to see what else there was out there. You were the first girlfriend I had had in one hundred years, Caroline. I just needed to know about other girls. But none of them hold a candle to you, and that is because you are unique. You are genuine. All neurotic control freakiness on crack that you are, I love that. I love you, Caroline, and I'm just now realizing it. Would you please think about taking me back? I'm nothing without you."

Caroline watched Damon for a moment. She hated seeing him so down like this, only knowing that she was going to make it worse. She watched him intently, and finally spoke, "I know that you've changed, Damon. I can see it written all over your face. But…" she paused for a moment and took his hand in hers, "I'm dating Tyler. Actually, we're engaged." She lifted her left hand to show him the engagement ring that was on her left ring finger. "I'm really sorry, Damon, but when you dumped me, I just couldn't handle it, and Tyler was there for me when nobody else was."

"You're really going to do it, aren't you?"

"What, marry Tyler?"

"No. Don't you remember what you said when we broke up?"

Caroline watched the floor and then looked at Damon.

"Damon, I told you so."

**A/N 2: For those of you who have them, I post fanfiction related rants and stories at my livejournal, .com/. I usually post a story there a day or two before I have the time to get it on , so if you want to add me, just leave me a message on my friends only post.**


	2. Chapter 2

Tyler and Caroline were sitting in a booth at the Grill. They were sitting really close to one another, and every once in a while, Caroline would lean over and whisper something in Tyler's ear. They would both smile and Caroline would cover up her mouth with her hand and giggle. It was a disgusting display.

Damon sat at the bar, his eyes totally focused on Tyler and Caroline, and part of him was disgusted, but he just couldn't look away. It was kind of like a car accident – horrible to watch, but you just can't look away. She sat there, downing his scotch, eyes glued on the happy couple. Part of him was happy that Caroline was happy, but the other part of him – the other part of him was furious. He didn't want her to be happy with such a douche as Tyler Lockwood. After the way he had treated her in the past, why would she get engaged to that dick?

_But remember,_ a small voice said in the back of his head, _you treated her worse at one point, and she gave you a second chance_.

Damn Caroline and her good nature. If she could just tell people to fuck off once in a while, she'd be so much better off.

Damon looked back over at Caroline and Tyler, and he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. It was Caroline; she was staring at him. She knew that he was watching her, and she was rubbing it in. She was fucking rubbing in the fact that Tyler had her when Damon wanted her. His eyes grew wide and he slammed down his fist on the bar counter. He noticed that everybody was looking at him, so he slapped money on the counter, and, shaking his head, he left the Grill.

Returning home, he found Stefan waiting for him. He rolled his eyes again, he was _not_ in the mood for this.

He walked in the door and as Stefan opened his mouth, Damon held a hand up, "Don't start with me. I'm not in the mood."

"Quit ignoring me," Stefan said, in a tone that made Damon's head hurt, as he followed him into the kitchen to get a bag of blood. "This is all your fault, Damon."

"Look, brother," Damon said, stopping abruptly, whirling around to address Stefan, "I really don't want to get into this with you right now. I'm not in the mood."

"But this _is_ all your fault. Do you disagree?"

"Stefan, your voice is grating on my nerves right now," Damon said, pouring the blood from the bag and into a coffee cup. "I don't want to deal with your St. Stefan crap right now."

Stefan made a face, "Look, I'm sorry she's engaged. But you aren't going to drink it away."

Damon took a drink of the blood and glared at his brother, "I don't know what to do. I don't know whether or not I should just leave her alone – she looks really happy with him."

"And she knows you've been watching her."

Damon cocked his head to the side and gave Stefan a quizzical look, "How do you know?"

"Because she told me. Just because you and Caroline broke up doesn't mean that I have to stop talking to her."

"Great," Damon said sarcastically, "That's just fucking wonderful."

"You need to stop watching them, Damon," Stefan said in a serious voice, "because you're turning into one of those creepy ex-boyfriend stalker guys."

"Hello, vampire," Damon said, waving his hand. "Vampire equals creepy, you know. Or, rather…it should."

Damon finished his blood and put the cup down, "I can't do this," he said after a moment. "I can't sit around pretending that I'm happy for Caroline because she's happy. I can't do it. I love her, I _need_ her. I can't leave her alone."

"Well, you better try," Stefan said, watching him intently, "because you did this. You are the one who –"

"You don't have to remind me," Damon interrupted, "I remember what I did."

As Damon turned around and started walking to his room, Stefan said behind him, "So, what? Are you just going to hide in your room? Brood a little bit and then try to win her back again?"

"I need some time to myself, brother," Damon said, still walking.

-x-

"He hasn't been out of his room for three days," Stefan complained to Elena, pacing back and forth in her living room. "He is in pretty sorry shape."

"Have you talked to Caroline to see if maybe she'd go over there and talk to him?" Elena asked, watching Stefan carefully. He just shrugged.

"After their breakup, and then his declaration of still loving her, I can't ask Caroline to do something like that. Everybody knows that she never really got over him."

"How do you know that?" Elena asked curiously. Stefan stopped pacing and just watched her for a moment, head cocked to the side.

"Oh, come on Elena. You have to be blind in order not to see it."

Elena shrugged, "Oh. I thought that maybe it was me."

Stefan shrugged, "The whole town knows it. She never got over Damon and her engagement to Tyler seemed a little fast, don't you think? Maybe we ought to go and see her so we can just talk to her…"

"I'm going to solve this right now," Elena said at Stefan's silence, grabbing her keys off of the end table by the couch, "We're going to see her. Right now."

-x-

At first, Elena didn't think that Caroline was home, because there was no car in the driveway and Caroline was not answering the door. So she got out the key that Caroline had given to her – yes, it _was _an emergency key, but Elena wanted to talk to Caroline right now. So, technically, it _was_ an emergency. Or, at least, that's what Elena told Stefan.

They walked through the house and heard Caroline humming in her bedroom. Elena walked in there and she saw Caroline making the bed.

"Seriously, Care? You're making the fucking bed. Since when do you do that?" Elena asked her, and Caroline just laughed.

"I don't know, I just felt like it today. What do you guys want?"

"How did you know –"

"Hello – vampire here. I have enhanced senses, remember? Anyway, what do you guys want?"

"You know, I'm not really sure," Stefan said, coming around the corner. "This was Elena's idea."

"Caroline, have you seen Damon recently?" Elena asked softly, and she saw Caroline's eyes darken. Caroline just shook her head no.

"He really misses you," Stefan piped up, "he's been holed up in his room for three whole days. He's in pretty sorry shape."

"I'm sorry, but he's not my problem anymore," Caroline said shortly.

"C'mon, Caroline, the whole town knows that you still carry a torch for the guy," Elena said gently, but right after she said it, she regretted it. She just sighed and ran a hand through her hair, "Never mind that. I'm sorry I said it."

"Yes, I still love Damon; I probably always will. But I've moved on with my life, and you would think that he would, too."

"He's sorry for what he did to you, why don't you just give him a second chance?"

"If you talk to Damon again, tell him that I am happy with Tyler, but I would love to be friends with him."


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I know that in chapter one I said that this was going to do a sad story, but that was back when it was just a one-shot. As this story has progressed, it's going to have a happier ending than I originally thought it would. It does have a little twist to it, and I'm nervous about that (in chapters to come) so I would really REALLY love feedback on the direction that the story is going.**

Stefan stood outside Damon's bedroom door the next day, debating on whether or not to just barge in. He played a mental game of heads or tails, and after losing to himself, decided to just go in. He silently opened the door and saw Damon lying in bed, watching TV. He shook his head, but Damon didn't even look at him, "What do you want, brother?"

"Elena and I've been worried about you," Stefan said, watching Damon intensely. "You haven't left this room in days."

"I've left a few times to feed," Damon corrected, flipping off the TV and looking at Stefan. "What do you want?"

"Elena and I went to see Caroline yesterday, to see if she could talk some sense into you," Stefan started, "but she let me know that she's very happy with Tyler. She did say, however, that she wants to be friends with you."

"Friends? Seriously? You've got to be fucking kidding me."

"She really wants to be your friend, Damon. She misses you –"

"But not the same way I miss her," Damon interrupted.

"I know, but why don't you give being friends with her a chance."

"Oh, my little brother, ever the optimist," Damon said sarcastically. "I don't know if I _can_ be just friends with her."

"Why don't you give it a try?"

-x-

"Thanks for meeting me," Caroline said, setting her purse down on the table and sliding in the booth across from Damon. "I was afraid that you wouldn't show."

Damon looked at her longingly without realizing it, and Caroline cleared her throat loudly. He snapped out of it and glared at her.

"Sorry," Damon said, after a moment. "This is just really weird for me, is it weird for you too?"

"Maybe a little," she said after a moment, "but I don't want to lose our relationship, Damon. I want to have you in my life still."

"Okay, so I'll give this friends thing a try," Damon said after a few moments of silence. "What did you want to meet me for?"

"Well, I'm planning my wedding, and…"

"Hell no. No fucking way am I going to help you plan your wedding."

"But, Damon," Caroline whined, sticking her lower lip out much farther than it needed to go, just for emphasis, "I don't have anybody to do this with."

"Um, you have Elena. You have Bonnie. They are girls, and girls love this kind of stuff. I just…I can't watch you make plans to marry some douche that I can't even stand to be in the same room with right now."

"I don't want you to help me pick out flowers or dresses. I want a man's opinion. It won't be a lot, just a few tiny things. Don't you think you can at least do that for me?"

Damon sighed heavily, but then looked at her. He just could not deny her of anything.

"Yeah, okay, I'll help you but you owe me."

They got up from their booth, Caroline grabbed her purse, and Damon followed her out of The Grill silently. She got her keys out of her purse and said, "We're taking my car."

"Why? Your car sucks ass."

"Yeah, well since I'm the bride and you're just the friend…I say we take my car."

Dammit. When she looked at him that way, Damon just could not tell her no. Finally, Damon shrugged, "Hey, what have I got to lose."

Caroline grinned ear to ear.

-x-

They had been holed up in this wedding boutique for four hours. Four fucking hours! Elena and Bonnie had met them there, and while Caroline was trying on dress after dress, Elena went over to talk to Damon.

"How'd Stefan get you out of the house?"

"He didn't. Well, not exactly. Caroline called after Stefan told me that she just wanted to be friends, and she wanted me to meet her at The Grill. I couldn't refuse because…"

"Because you carry the torch for her, Damon. Everyone knows."

"Yeah, I'm not as stealthy as I used to be. This human emotions bullshit just gets in the way. Seriously, what men do for love…"

"You know what you do now? Tempt her a little bit. Give her reasons why she _should_ pick you over Tyler. Not in a jealous ex-boyfriend kind of way, but improve yourself so she can't miss it."

Damon shrugged, "That would never work. But I'm still holed up in a fucking wedding boutique at three o'clock on a Saturday afternoon. I could be out there, doing so much more damage." He grinned his cocky grin and Elena slapped his arm.

"What? Caroline's not mine, after all."

"No, but do you really want her to see you fucking sorority girls, drinking their blood mixed along with your bourbon? That's an impression that I don't think she could ignore."

Damon shrugged, "I guess you're right. When did you get to be so smart?"

Elena grinned, "I've always been this smart. You just never noticed before."

"But until I can start on that plan, Elena, I'm still stuck here in a wedding boutique, watching the love of my life try on wedding dresses. I've been here for four fucking hours."

Damon sighed to himself and got up out of his chair. He walked over to Bonnie and said, "Where did Caroline go?"

"What do you think we're here for, Damon? She's trying on a wedding dress."

Damon sighed, "Caroline, I need to talk to you."

She came out of the fitting room wearing a wedding gown, and Damon's mouth opened a little. He just looked at her, and Caroline giggled, "You okay, Damon?"

"Uh, yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. I…uh, wow, you look beautiful."

"Thanks, Damon. Did you want something?"

"Uh…yeah. You got the time?" Oh man, what she did to him.

Caroline laughed, "You're the one with the watch, Damon."

He swallowed and nodded, "Oh, yeah, that's right." He went over to sit back down, Elena laughing at him. He looked at her, "This is not funny."

"Oh, I would say this is _very_ funny."

-x-

There they were again. Tyler and Caroline were seated closely in a booth at the Grill, whispering and giggling. Damon knew that Caroline had moved on, she was fucking getting married, but he just couldn't let go. Why the fuck couldn't he let go?

"Another drink, honey?" The woman behind the bar had been giving him looks all night, but he didn't really notice. He was too busy watching Tyler and Caroline.

"Yeah, I'll take another," he said, and after she poured him another glass of scotch, he downed the whole drink in one gulp. He knew he shouldn't be here right now, but he just couldn't tear himself away. And then it happened: Caroline's eyes met Damon's.

Damn her! She knew he was watching, and she was taunting him with her eyes. Staring at Damon, she giggled once more while Tyler whispered to her. Damon rolled his eyes, this was just getting ridiculous. He slapped some money down on the bar, telling the bartender that he was heading out, and started to leave the Grill. As he was heading out, though, he practically ran into Elena – literally.

"What are you doing here, Damon?" Elena asked, giving him a look that she already knew what he was doing there.

"I needed a drink. Stefan's driving me crazy."

"He's worried about you, Damon. Just because you agreed to be friends with Caroline doesn't mean…"

"Shh," he said, putting a hand over her mouth. "She's over there with Tyler and I don't want them to hear us."

Elena nodded and Damon removed his hand, and she said, "So, are you going home?"

He sighed, "Any place would be better than here."


	4. Chapter 4

The next day, Caroline came by the boarding house early. She went straight up to Damon's room, where he was sleeping, picked up a pillow that had fallen off of the bed and onto the floor, and threw it at him. He awoke with a start.

"What the hell, Caroline?" he asked, rubbing his eyes. She made a face.

"What're you doing in my bedroom, Caroline?" Damon asked her, and she just grinned.

"Get up and get dressed," she ordered. "You and me are going shopping."

"What kind of shopping?"

"Clothes shopping. Tyler wants to have engagement pictures taken."

He groaned, but got up anyway. He stood next to Caroline in just his boxers and watched her for a moment before saying, "You miss me."

"What?" She asked. "That doesn't even make sense."

"Why else would you be dragging me all over the place with you? You miss being with me."

She shrugged, "You're good company, Damon, no matter what anybody else says about you."

He gave her a knowing look, "Uh huh. Right."

"I miss your company, Damon. That's all."

The look he gave her told her that he didn't believe her, but he didn't say a word.

After showering and dressing, Damon looked at Caroline, "Where are we going again?"

"Clothes shopping. You used to do this with me, remember?"

"Yeah, that was before. You know, when we were _together_. You have Elena and Bonnie now, I know you three. You love clothes shopping."

Caroline smiled, "Yeah, well I want a man's opinion."

He was starting to suspect that Caroline was doing this just because she missed him, but didn't say a word. As they drove to the mall, they sat mostly in silence before Damon looked at her and blurted out, "Do you love him?"

"Huh?" she asked, keeping her eyes on the road.

"Tyler. Do you love him?"

Okay, so this was a little awkward, but she took a breath before saying, "Yeah. I do."

"I don't know, Caroline. We've only been broken up for six months before you go and get _engaged_? I don't know, it sounds like you were desperate to move on to me…"

"What do you want me to say, Damon? That I was really heartbroken, not to mention pissed off, when you broke up with me because we were getting into a routine?" She took a quick glance at him before pulling into the mall parking lot. "Yeah, I know why you broke it off. Stefan told me. I was hurt when I found out, but Tyler was there for me when I needed him the most."

For the first time in a long time, Damon was speechless. He wasn't sure what to say, and after Caroline parked the car and they were on their way into the mall, he finally said, "I'm sorry, Caroline."

"It's fine, Damon. I've gotten over it."

He had his suspicions, but he wasn't going to start that again. He just had a feeling that Caroline missed him – it seemed that lately, she had been hanging around a lot. Why wasn't she spending all that time with Tyler? She would probably say, because he's working, but Damon knew better than that. He knew that if she really wanted to spend time with someone, she would make the time. Why else would she be dragging him all over town?

-x-

Three hours later, Damon was close to getting up and just leaving. They had taken Caroline's car, but he figured he could get home just as fast with his vampire speed. He just couldn't take this anymore. She had told him earlier that she wanted a man's opinion and he had given her his opinion whenever she asked, which seemed like every five minutes. She was really torturing him, and part of him was wondering if he could handle much more of this. He felt like he was about to lose his sanity when he saw Elena walk through the door. She came over to him, "What're you doing here?"

"I'm here with Caroline," Damon said, annoyance present in his voice. Elena just looked at him.

"Caroline just called me to ask me to come down here and help her pick between outfits. Why would she ask me if you're down here?"

"I don't know, Elena, but I give. I give up on this; I can't see her this happy with someone else. It's killing me on the inside."

Elena looked at Damon sympathetically, "Yeah, I bet. It can't be easy."

"If Caroline comes back out, tell her I had something important to do."

"What?"

"I don't know, make something up. I just…I gotta get out of here, and if I see her in any more new outfit, I'm going to be speechless. Again."

Deep down, Elena felt sorry for Damon. He really loved her, that much was obvious just by the way that he looked at her. It was starting to make her a little mad at Caroline, to be honest. As soon as Damon sped out of there, Caroline came out of the dressing room, dressed in her normal clothes. She was carrying a couple hangers full of clothes and looked at Elena, "Where did Damon go?"

"Caroline Forbes, I'm mad at you," was all Elena could say, and Caroline's expression changed. She just looked at Elena.

"How could you do this to Damon? He loves you, you know. You can just tell by the way that he looks at you. He wants to be with you, and you're flaunting this engagement to Tyler right in his face. It's not cool."

Caroline avoided Elena's gaze, not sure how to respond. After a few moments, her gaze went back up to Elena's as she said, "Damon has this coming."

"Because he dumped you _six months ago_? That was six months ago, Caroline. He feels bad enough about it, and now you have to go around, flaunting your engagement to Tyler. I mean, dress shopping and clothes shopping? That's not something you take your ex-boyfriend to do, whether you're friends with him or not. You had all this time to grieve the end of your relationship, all this time to get over him. But you didn't. You just got engaged to the first guy you have a relationship with after Damon, and then throw it in his face."

"I told him when he broke up with me that I was going to do this –"

"You were hurt, Caroline. When people are dumped, they say things out of spite. But you didn't have to actually do it. You didn't have to actually throw your engagement in his face. It's just ridiculous."

"What did you expect me to do, Elena? When he came back, I was already engaged to Tyler. I couldn't dump Tyler just because Damon had a change of heart. What if he had another change of heart and left me again? I just couldn't handle that."

"I know that you love him still, Caroline. I can tell by the way you two look at each other. But you need to rethink what you're doing to Damon. He just can't handle it, and I'm with him on this one. It's just cruel." And with that, Elena walked out of the store, leaving Caroline alone with her thoughts.


	5. Chapter 5

"Tyler, I can't do this anymore. I can't keep this up," Caroline said into the phone as she unlocked the front door. "Elena practically bitched me out earlier because of how much I'm hurting Damon."

"So, Caroline, what do you want to do about this?" Tyler asked her.

"I don't know, Tyler. It's just that…well, I miss him," she said softly, setting her purse down on the coffee table and plopping herself down on the couch. "I don't know if I can keep this up."

"You said that already, Caroline. Tell me what's going on."

"I still love him, Tyler. This just…it isn't working. I don't know what to do."

"Take a deep breath. We're in this together, remember?" Tyler asked, and for a moment Caroline thought she was going to explode. She ran a hand through her hair and sighed heavily.

"I can't…I can't keep hurting him like this. He's just…he's so sad. I'm practically killing him. We shouldn't have done this; I just feel so guilty about it."

"So, Caroline, what are you afraid of? I mean, really afraid of?"

Caroline just sat there, pulling her legs up so they were resting on the couch, and tried to figure out how to tell him what she was feeling. As a matter of fact, what the hell _was_ she feeling?

"I'm afraid that if I give him another chance, he's going to walk out on me. Y'know, like he did before. He got tired of me before – what should I do if that happens again? I can't just give it up, I have to make sure that what I'm feeling is real before I talk to Damon about it."

"You know, whatever you decide, I'm going to back your play. I just want to make sure you're 100% sure of what you're doing before you act."

"Thanks, Ty," Caroline said softly. "You're the best."

-x-

Damon wandered into the Grill the next night, trying to find more bourbon. He had drank every drop at the boarding house, and besides, Stefan was starting to give him a headache.

He sat up at the bar, and, as luck would have it, he was right next to _him_.

"Tyler," Damon said, as nicely as he could, "what are you doing here?"

"I'm 22, dude," Tyler said, looking at him. "I can drink if I want."

Damon shrugged, "Shouldn't you be out celebrating with your _fiancée_?" He said the word like it left a bad taste in his mouth. He watched as Tyler downed a shot of tequila, and then said, "I mean, if I had Caroline, I would definitely not be spending my time at a bar."

"Just because Caroline and I are engaged does not mean we have to spend every waking moment together," Tyler answered, downing another shot.

It was everything Damon could do to not punch the kid right in his face. Damon sighed, taking a shot of whiskey, before telling the bartender to leave the bottle beside him, and then looked at Tyler. "What did you do to her?"

"Huh?" Tyler asked, downing another shot. He looked confused.

"Caroline. What did you do to her?"

"After you left, Damon, Caroline was left in little pieces. She's afraid of her loved ones leaving her. Think about it, dude – you guys were together five years. Five years is maybe a long time for a human, but for vampires, five years doesn't even begin to scratch the surface. How the hell did you get tired of her after five fucking years?" Tyler's voice started to raise, and people were looking at him and Damon, so he poured another shot, drank it, and said, "She misses you, a lot."

"Yeah, I got that impression," Damon said, almost smugly. "I've been all over town with her to plan your damned wedding. She's dragging me everywhere, when she has Bonnie and Elena that would gladly go with her. I was starting to think that she missed me."

"Maybe things would turn around if you were worthy of her, Damon," Tyler said. Damon's eyes grew wide.

"Are you sure that you really want to _insult_ me, Tyler? Just because Caroline loves you does not mean that I won't break your neck."

"Look, Damon, I don't want to fight you, okay? It's hard enough to know that Caroline still loves you."

"Does she?" Damon asked bitterly. "I mean, she's been taunting me with your fucking engagement."

"Do you ever think that maybe she's doing that to see how you'd react to it?" Tyler asked, mentioning something that Damon never thought of before. "Maybe she's just pushing your buttons."

"Why are you being nice to me?" Damon asked suspiciously.

"Honestly, because I don't want to fight you, Damon. I love Caroline, and I want her to be happy – even if that means that she's back with _you_."

That was when Tyler slapped some money down on the bar and got up. "Think about it, Damon," he said, leaving the Grill.

-x-

After Damon's talk with Tyler, he practically flew to Caroline's house. It was almost three in the morning, but he just _had_ to see her. In his heart he knew that he'd always love her, that he'd always choose her. He climbed through her window – which wasn't as easy of a task as he remembered it – and sat on the edge of the bed beside her, watching her sleep. He sat there for a few moments, watching her, lost in thought.

"What the hell, Damon? Stalkerish ex-boyfriend behavior much?" Caroline bolted upright and looked at him. "Do you even know what time it is?"

"Yeah, it's three in the morning, but I just had to see you."

"God, Damon, you smell like whiskey. Where the hell have you been?"

"Drinking at the Grill. Which, by the way, I ran into Tyler there."

"Yeah, so? He's 22, he can drink if he wants."

Damon bit back a chuckle; that had been exactly what Tyler had said to him, so he thought it a little funny that she said it like that.

"Look, Tyler and I had a talk – well, I guess that's what you could call it – and I'm a little confused."

Caroline rubbed her eyes with the backs of her hands and looked at Damon questioningly, "Well, what did he say to you?"

"He said that he loves you, and wants you to be happy – even if it was with me."

Caroline nodded, "Look, Damon, I'd love to talk to you about this, but not at three in the morning. I'm too tired. How about you go home and I come see you tomorrow, around, say noon? Then we can talk about this to your heart's content."

Damon nodded, "Yeah, sure. I'll see you tomorrow."

As she watched Damon climb out her window, she put her head in her hands. What was she supposed to do now?


	6. Chapter 6

So, she wasn't sure why she told Damon that she'd meet him for a talk. All she knew was that it had been three o'clock in the morning and she wanted sleep, but Damon wanted to talk. Damn him and his emo drinking crap. It usually only happened when Damon drank enough alcohol to actually _get_ drunk – and that wasn't a whole lot. But, with all the drama that was surrounding them lately, she wasn't surprised at all that Damon was drinking heavily. What surprised her, though, was the fact that he had bumped into Tyler at The Grill –and they had actually had a civilized conversation. It wasn't a secret – everybody in Mystic Falls knew that Damon and Tyler hated each other. Tyler hated Damon because he had left Caroline heartbroken, and Damon hated Tyler because…well, because Tyler Lockwood was a dick. It wasn't a surprise, honestly – Tyler was a dick to a lot of people.

As she got ready to go and see Damon that morning, she was nervous. She couldn't believe it – she was really nervous to see him, and she knew why. Things were different between them now. Him showing up in her bedroom last night had really thrown her off her game. She walked into the boarding house that morning, seeing Stefan and Elena sitting in the parlor. She went in, and Elena waved at her.

"What are you doing here, Care?" Elena asked her, and Caroline shrugged.

"Damon and I need to talk," she said softly. "He showed up at my house last night, drunk. And I don't mean the normal Damon drunk – he was _very_ drunk, even for a vampire. I told him that I'd come over today and we could talk."

"But your rehearsal dinner is tonight, Care," Elena said, watching Caroline closely. "So it doesn't matter what you and Damon talk about – you'll have no time, unless you leave Tyler at the alter tomorrow afternoon."

Shrugging, Caroline starting to climb the stairs, but she heard Elena say, "Stefan, I'll be you twenty bucks she doesn't go through with it."

"With what?" she heard Stefan say. "Through marrying Tyler, or getting back together with Damon."

"Fine. I'll bet you twenty bucks that she doesn't go through with marrying Tyler."

Caroline stopped at Damon's door, standing in front of it for a moment before walking right in. Damon was awake, but he was lying on top of his blankets, watching something crappy on TV.

"What are you watching?" she asked him, and he shrugged.

"I'm not real sure. I just wanted the noise – I've got too much going on in my head to really concentrate on anything. I'm glad to see you made it." He patted the bed next to him and said, "Have a seat."

Caroline sat beside him, putting her legs up on the bed, and it felt…good. This felt oddly satisfying, being here with him. They didn't even have to touch, but part of her ached for his touch.

"The rehearsal dinner is tonight, Damon, and I'd love for you to be there."

"Are you throwing your fucking engagement in my face again, Caroline?" Damon practically growled, but Caroline shook her head.

"No. I just really want you there. We're going to go through the vows, and – I could really use the moral support."

Damon nodded, "Yeah, okay. Sounds good."

"It's at the park, at five. I hope to see you there."

-x-

Caroline kept checking her watch. She looked at it again, noticing that it was only ten minutes from the last time that she checked it. She sighed heavily before running – meaning in most literal of senses – into Tyler. She toppled over, but he caught her.

"I don't think that he's going to show," Caroline whispered to Tyler, but he shrugged.

"He'll be here. Don't worry."

As if on cue, Damon showed up, and damn, he looked good. She ran over to him and threw her arms around his neck, hugging him. She couldn't help herself; she smelled his cologne and she about went to pieces. She really wanted to be with him – her body ached for him. She pulled away from him, "I'm glad to see you're here, Damon."

The rehearsal dinner went well. They practiced their vows and the preacher said the line, "Anybody here have a reason why these two should not be married?"

Caroline had butterflies, but she saw Damon stand up, "She can't marry him."

"Son," the preacher said, looking uncomfortably at Caroline, "why do you say that?"

"Because she needs to marry me. Please, Caroline, I love you and I'll never leave you again. I swear it."

Caroline and Tyler exchanged glances and smiled at each other as Caroline ran to Damon. She threw her arms around his neck and kissed him with as much force as she could. She kissed him hard, tilting her head and massaging his tongue with hers. She almost got lost in the moment, it felt so good to be in his arms again, but she pried herself away, "Damon, I'm sorry. Everybody is looking at us."

"Yeah, and I'm not really sure what to say here," Damon said, and it made Caroline smile.

"I need some time with Tyler and Damon," Caroline said to the crowd, "so give us about fifteen minutes and we'll be back."

The trio went over to a secluded area in the park and Tyler and Caroline exchanged glances before Caroline said, "Damon, I'd love to marry you. But what changed your mind?"

"Uh, well, I can't stand to see you happy with him. I want you back Caroline, please."

Caroline smiled, "Yes, Damon. I'd love to be with you." She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his mouth – hard. She put everything she had been feeling into the one kiss – she wanted to show him how desperately she'd been missing him. She tilted her head so he could get better access, and he slid his tongue into her mouth. It felt heavenly.

"I hate to break this up," Tyler said softly, "but the people over there who are staring at you are going to want some kind of answers." It brought Caroline back to the real world and she pulled away from Damon.

"You better rent a tux or something, Damon. I want you looking real good when we marry tomorrow."

-x-

"He actually fell for it," Caroline said to Tyler as she unlocked her front door that night. "I guess I'm a much better actress than people give me credit for."

Tyler smiled, "I can't believe he didn't figure it out. We had him completely fooled. Are you sorry you did it?"

Caroline scratched an imaginary itch on her forehead, saying, "No. I wanted to see what he would do if I _had_ moved on without him. I am actually pleasantly surprised."

Tyler shrugged, "This way you get the guy who deserves you. He really does, Caroline, I can see it now."

"Thank you for helping me, Ty. I wouldn't have been able to pull it off if it weren't for you."

"You're my best friend, Caroline Forbes, and I would do absolutely anything for you."

**A/N: So there is my twist, and if anybody actually got what I implied at the end, you get the extra cookie. I had a lot of fun writing this story, and keep an eye out for the epilogue (it may be out sooner than later, I'm still working it through my head) and I want to thank everybody for their feedback/reviews. And because I added that extra twist, I would love to hear comments on it, because I'm a little nervous – I've never done a twist like that before in any of my stories. Thanks for reading.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Here is the epilogue as promised. This takes place five years after the last chapter, and I'm really happy with it. **

**After this, I'm taking a small break from writing, because of a small bout with writer's block – I can add on stories that I'm working on but I can't seem to come up with anything new, so I'm taking a break. Hopefully some more ideas will come to me. I hope you all enjoyed the story.**

It had been five years since Damon and Caroline had gotten back together, and the five year mark was really starting to make her worry. As Caroline watched Damon that morning, he practically knew what she was thinking.

"I know what you're thinking about," Damon said, coming closer and breaking the ice. "How can anybody not know, knowing our history?"

Caroline stood up and looked at him carefully. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Come on, Care…think about it. I'm ready to commit – I was ready to commit five fucking years ago. I fucking married you, for God's sake."

Caroline nodded, "Yeah, I get it. I'm just…worried. We've been together for five years, and you know what that means."

"No, Caroline," Damon said sarcastically, "I have no fucking idea."

"Okay, so I'm an insecure mess," Caroline said, sighing heavily. "I'm sorry, Damon, but I can't change who I am."

Damon groaned, "I'm really sorry about before. I thought that we covered this when we got back together, Caroline. What's the big deal now?"

Caroline rolled her eyes and headed for the front door. Damon followed her, saying, "Where the hell are you going?"

"I need some air. I'm going to see Elena," she said, letting the door slam behind her.

-x-

"You should be happy today, Caroline. It's your fifth wedding anniversary," Elena said as she opened the door and saw Caroline standing there. She tried to ignore the fact that it was raining and Caroline looked like a rainy mess with her hair all wet and some of her makeup was smeared. Elena wanted to think that her friend's eyes were puffy and red was because of the weather – but part of her knew better.

Elena hugged her friend and then said, "Come in. You need tea."

"Since when do you drink _tea_, Elena?" Caroline asked with a smirk. "I thought your thing was coffee."

"It is, but we're out. Jenna seriously needs to do some grocery shopping. So we'll settle for tea."

Caroline smiled briefly at her friend, and sat at the kitchen table while Elena prepared the tea. A few minutes passed before Elena came over with two cups and a kettle of tea. She set a hot pad on the table and set the tea kettle on it.

"Okay, so spill," she said, pouring Caroline some tea. "Be careful, it's hot," she warned about the tea.

Caroline sighed and then revealed how she was _really_ feeling. She didn't want to tell anyone, but it was Elena, her best friend, the person who she could trust the most in the entire universe. Elena was practically her sister – they had known each other since birth.

"You know what today is," Caroline said after a moment of silence.

Elena nodded, "Yeah. It's your anniversary."

Caroline shook her head, "I mean, yeah, it's our anniversary, but it's also the anniversary of the last time Damon left me. Remember?"

Elena nodded, "Yeah, but if he didn't care about you, or even if he was denying his feelings towards you, he wouldn't have married you. That's definitely a sign that he wanted to commit."

A tear slid down Caroline's cheek, "Then why am I so insecure? I'm an insecure mess, and I don't know what to do about it."

"Why don't you let me make you over," Elena offered after a few moments of silence. "We can put you in a hot dress and then take you home – Damon won't even know what hit him."

"Sure, what the hell," Caroline said, barely even thinking it over. "A girly day can be fun."

-x-

Later that night, after a day of pampering with Elena, Caroline showed back up at the boarding house in a short, tight, crimson red dress that hugged her in all the right places. She felt confident in it – which was different from how she normally felt. She went in the boarding house and found Damon in the kitchen, drinking a blood bag. He looked up at her, and almost had to do a double take. He wiped his mouth and then said, "Wow, Care. You look gorgeous."

Caroline smiled a small smile as she wrapped her arms around his neck and breathed in his scent. He smelled like cologne and…well, he smelled like Damon. There was nothing that could compare to that scent in the universe.

She looked up at him and he lowered his head, putting his mouth to hers. The kiss started soft and sensual but soon turned hungry and needy. He pushed her up against the table in the kitchen and she wrapped her legs around his body. She broke the kiss momentarily to say, "Um, Elena said that we should talk about earlier."

"What's to talk about?" he asked, running his hands up and down her arms, "I know why you were depressed, and apparently Elena helped you fix it. I should send her a fruit basket or something," he said, more to himself than Caroline, but she laughed anyway.

"C'mon, if we're going to do this, we should at least be in our room," Caroline said, unwrapping her legs and leading him to their room by his hand. "I'm sure we can think of ways we can celebrate."

Damon grinned, "I've got the best girl in the entire world," he said smugly. "I don't know what I ever did to deserve you, Caroline."

It was true. He didn't deserve her, but here she was – and she was all his.


End file.
